The Indonesian ride-hailing company started the service with 50 vehicles in Ho Chi Minh City dedicated to serving healthcare workers from five hospitals and medical command centers.

All driver-partners are required to test Covid-19 negative before their first trip and on a weekly basis after that.

Gojek has arranged for drivers to stay at hotels from now until late September when the city’s social distancing campaign is set to end.

"We have made all the necessary preparations to launch GoCar this year," said Duc Phung, Gojek Vietnam general manager.

"When the pandemic escalated in HCMC and social distancing regulations were put in place, we pivoted quickly, adjusting the service to focus on supporting healthcare workers."

GoCar is the latest addition to Gojek’s line-up of offerings in the Vietnamese market, which include on-demand services for motorbike-hailing (GoRide), parcel delivery (GoSend) and online food delivery (GoFood).

Its competitors Grab and Be have been offering car services for years.